One of the difficulties in speaking Mandarin is that there are up to four
intonations of the same word. Consider the following sounds, all
pronounced as “ma”.

When listened carefully these words are pronounced in four rather
distinct intonations, each with a totally different meaning.

First intonation: Mother

Second Intonation:
Hemp

Third Intonation:
Horse

Fourth Intonation:
Scold

The symbols
are commonly used to designate the four intonations.

Listen carefully, distinguish the intonations
and nuances, be willing to produce sounds that might sound strange and you are
on your way to success.

Intonations are important in spoken Mandarin.
You could give different meanings or impressions depending on intonations.
However when spoken in sentences listeners are better able to “guess” the
meanings even though intonations may not be accurate. Intonations are
unimportant in word processing.